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I managed to block some of his punches, but the impact sent waves of agony through my arms. He dodged my attempts at counterattacks, and I knew I had lost my earlier grip on the upper hand. I was screaming inside, knowing if I fell here, there wouldn't be anything I could do to keep Victoria safe.

With a swift move, he swept my legs out from under me, and I crashed to the ground hard enough to knock the air out of my lungs. He stood over me, grinning maliciously.

"Pathetic." He sneered as he grabbed me by my collar and hauled me up, pushing me forward onto my knees. "Looks like your protector isn't a very good one, girlie."

"Az!" Victoria screamed.

All I could do was watch in horror as she charged at the man, brandishing her stilettos. She wailed on him, trying to distract him from where I was on the floor. I growled in anger as the Jackal snatched her hand in his before backhanding her hard enough to knock her to the ground. I tried to push up to stand before I heard the dramatic sound of a gun being cocked behind me and a low chuckle that didn't belong to my attacker.

"This position is fitting for you, Casadei. I wouldn't try to get up if I were you. You're not faster than my friends here. They're just waiting for me to pull the trigger." Rinaldo's haughty voice made me see red. I gritted my teeth, and anger boiled inside me. "You, go help the others deal with the rest of them," he said absently, presumably to the man who'd just handed me a beating.

"I thought you said you'd give us time," I managed to say, trying to keep my voice steady.

I could hear the cruel smirk in Rinaldo's voice. "I never said how much time I'd give you. And it would seem it's run out."

I heard shuffling and raised my head to see Victoria standing with the gun I'd given her earlier. She pointed shakily at Rinaldo as she moved from behind the couch.

"Now, Victoria my dear," he said with a twisted sense of civility, "why don't you hand over that gun like a good girl so no one gets hurt? Let's not make this any more difficult than it needs to be."

Her grip on the gun tightened a moment, her knuckles turning white. She glanced at me briefly, uncertainty flickering in her eyes. I wanted to tell her not to trust Rinaldo, but I stayed silent, watching her. She lowered her arm and started moving towards us slowly. She held the gun out like she would present it to him.

My breath caught, and my chest tightened. She wouldn't. She couldn't. She inched closer, and I realized I couldn't even beangry with her if she was choosing to protect herself now. Still, something inside me started to crack and threatened to shatter.

She was within arm's reach now, and I couldn't see Rinaldo, but I could all but feel the victorious look on his face as she approached us. I looked up at her, and she met my gaze just before she shifted her stance. In one swift and fearless motion, she pointed the gun at Rinaldo and pulled the trigger. The gunshot echoed through the room, followed by a long silence as Rinaldo's lifeless body crumpled to the floor behind me with a soft thud.

Relief flooded over me as the realization of her plan washed over me. It wasn't doubt, betrayal, or self-preservation that had made her hesitate and shuffle forward. It'd been strategic so she could get close enough to catch him off guard and ensure she wouldn't miss her target.

Victoria's hands trembled as she lowered the gun she'd just used to end Rinaldo's reign of terror on her. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with shock at herself. I could see the turmoil in her expression rising as the reality of what she'd done started to sink in.

If I was honest, once her actions settled in, shock mixed with the relief that had flooded my system. She was a strong, capable woman, but I'd never expected her to take a life to protect me. Yet, here she was, standing before me with blood on her hands. It was a haunting reminder of how fast the brutal world we were entangled in could corrupt someone.

"Victoria," I whispered, slowly rising to my feet, my voice hoarse with an emotion it wasn't the time to put a name to. "You did what you had to do. This isnotyour fault."

"I killed him, Az. I killed a man," she said, her voice also low and trembling. She looked at me, her eyes still wide.

I stepped closer to her, gently taking the gun from her hand and holstering it in my jacket. "Yes, love, you did. But he left youwith no choice. It was either him, or me," I said, trying to soothe her, reaching to pull her close to me.

Just then, a deafening explosion shook the manor, causing the walls around us to tremble. Panic surged through me as the thought took over that this attack was far from over, and we'd only just survived the assault we'd faced here. We needed to get out of this bedroom and find the others. If there was an all-out war raging in the rest of the manor, we needed to regroup and protect one another until we could escape.

"Love, we need to move," I said urgently, taking her hand in mine and pulling the gun from its holster again. "Stay close to me."

She nodded, her numbness giving way to urgency. Together, we made our way out of the bedroom and into the darkened hall. The once comfortable environment was now dangerous and uncertain.

As we approached the now ruined foyer, the scene before us was both horrifying and surreal. Piles of bodies littered the once grand entrance, testaments to the fierce battle that had taken place. Smoke and debris were still hanging in the air from the apparent explosion that had cleared the room.

Leighton and Joey, ahead of the others, nearly ran into us as they'd obviously been coming to Victoria's rooms. I locked eyes with Leighton briefly before his gaze flitted to Victoria, practically attached to me in her attempt to stay close to me. I could see the relief in his expression that we'd made it out alive. Craig was just behind him, supporting a seriously injured Rich, who clutched his stomach where a severe gunshot wound was bleeding heavily. Despite the apparent pain and blood loss, Rich's eyes were alert as he refused to give in.

"We cleared the attackers out here," Leighton said, his voice steady, even somewhat chipper. "I'm glad to see you're both alive."

"Gotta say though, Az, you look like shit," Joey chimed in, a hint of a smile on his face despite his brows furrowed in concern.

I chuckled weakly, the tension in my shoulders momentarily easing. "Looks like you're the only one coming out of this without a new scar, Little Brother."

Before he could respond, Victoria's trembling voice drew all of our attention. "What… what are we going to do now?"

Still holding on despite his numerous injuries, Rich managed a weak smile in her direction. "Now, we run, Babygirl," he said, his voice painfully strained. "War has started, and we need to find a safe place to regroup."

But as he spoke, he slipped from Craig's grip to collapse on the floor in a heap. Panic surged through the five of us as the gravity of his condition became apparent.

"Rich!" Victoria cried, lurching toward him.

Joey intercepted her, his arms going around her waist as she leaned around him, sobbing. Giving him a quick nod of thanks, I knelt beside Rich, checking for a pulse. This close, I could see the gray tint to his unnaturally pale skin. The knowledge that I'd seen many of our enemies with the same pallor as they died played on a loop in my mind.

I nearly shouted in relief when I finally found his pulse. It was weak and thready, but it was there. Rich was alive, barely, but alive.

"He's got a pulse, but it's weak and fading. We have to get him somewhere safe and do something or…" I trailed off, not wanting to finish the rest of the sentence. We didn't have time to waste making a plan. We needed to do somethingnowif we wanted to keep him alive.